Month: July 2016

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” I really liked John F. Kennedy telling this quote to his friends. These words were influential and it touched me too.

My teaching skills had brought me back to where I should belong. Though it sounded corny to mimic McArthur’s “ I Shall Return”, it was happening in the real me. This time, the “return” has changed my entire life as I embraced new horizon of the Philippine Educational System.

Many of my friends and relatives had wondered why I left my profession three years ago. Well, a single mother of four with a high economic demand due to the increasing needs of family had changed my life’s perspectives. I left the low-income teaching job in exchange of a business in lime processing. Thinking it will bring me to prosperity, I moved to divert my “loan life” image into a “businesswoman” where there was plenty of money to count, not plenty of loan forms to comply just to meet the needs of the family. Business was so smooth at first but the tiresome endeavor in exchange of higher income had changed my lifestyles. When in teaching I enjoyed the company of professionals and well-mannered people, in business I had to deal with the uneducated workers and contemporaries then the New People’s Army. Their values and principles were unbearable though their life’s condition were miserable. I was not totally happy when I had those money, deep in my heart was my desire to teach them about life, but they couldn’t perceive my interpersonal views. They called me “Madame” a title similar to the other businesswomen who were my contemporaries, a title related to its negative connotation as being oppressive.

Yes, I laughed and ate with them, however those “good terms “will easily turn into sour when I can make a big leap of my profits. I was then viewed as oppressive especially when I can easily make the “closed deals” to the different companies and invite more bulk buyers of my product. Then suddenly I started receiving the “death threats” which had caused me to be vigilant and sometimes hide if needed. Until one day, they burned down my kiln into ashes.

Such a big loss had torn my dreams into pieces…then I realized I had to embrace my failures and start a new beginning. …

Talking about promotion in your career is something to meditate. All of us admire people who continued their education up to higher levels. Like taking up Master’s Degree then to a Doctor’s Degree. We viewed them as stars in our circles, a gem whose pedestal would soon become a portal for higher achievement in the department then soon to be a bearer of a good name.

Such scenario is very complicated to visualize and meditate. Those who opted to achieve a higher level of their profession must be in an exceptional set up of economic living condition. Many, though working in an agency with well compensated salary, cannot meet the demands of levelling up in their career due to many reasons.

Just like the common set up of people in our society, there are those who are contented with what they got while others still crave for more. Take a look at Maslow’s Theory on Hierarchy of Needs, there’s nothing wrong if you feel having contented in a comfort zone after acquiring your complete physiological needs. Finishing a four-year degree and land for a permanent job is quite a good fulfilment. Therefore, people in the working class who are stagnant in their roles are just replica of the “common village settlers” in our community. There are those workers whose potentials can be used to create innovations for their own department. Yet, they lacked motivation, willingness and commitment to contribute their best in the field. Maslow’s other theory on psychological needs which are belongingness, love and self-esteem looked less important to people who belong to the “me generation”.

Work performance in a public agency has been measured by IPCRF and OPCRF. This is an assessment of how far an employee can do his/her duty perennially. This perhaps had prompted our government towards the employee’s render of genuine government service to people. Many had claims their outstanding performance before without any legal documents to support. Today, every artefacts need proper documentations to legally support their claims.

Promotion will just come up on your way eventually. It is not something to chaste for or run after. It will automatically choose you without any doubts. The performer will just reap what he sow this time and it is what Maslow Theory has called “self-actualization”, achieving one’s full potential including creative activities. This means, before your crown of glory comes, the fruit of your motives in government service must be manifested first.